Koirala should go: Maoists

Nepal’s Maoist chief Prachanda on Thursday said that the fraternal Communist Party of Nepal (UML) could lead the government if Prime Minister Girija Prasad Koirala fails to implement the proposals on turning the country into a republic and in introducing a proportional electoral system.

Prachanda told Nepal FM that the Maoists would join the CPN (UML)-led government. The former insurgents on September 18 had resigned from Koirala’s government in protest against the government’s failure to fulfill their demands.

The Nepal Maoists are desperate to dethrone Koirala because the octogenarian leader has been opposed to their two primary demands. Prachanda said the Maoists could launch struggle with the help of “patriotic forces” if the CPN (UML) does not agree to lead the government.

The Maoists are also set to resume “kangaroo courts” and revive their parallel government to exert pressure on the country’s interim government. The former insurgent outfit is set to resume the kangaroo court in the southeastern city of Biratnagar. Interestingly, Biratnagar is Koirala’s constituency.

The revival of the Maoist courts would mean defying the Comprehensive Peace Accord (CPA) signed in November last year. The CPA bars the former rebels from conducting any parallel trials. “We have resumed our parallel government as Koirala has been dishonest,” a senior Maoist leader from Morang district said.

Meanwhile, the leaders of the Nepali Congress and the CPN (UML) claimed they have reached an agreement for holding the constituent assembly polls by next April. A meeting of senior leaders of the two parties on Wednesday decided that the CA election must take place by mid-April.